[350TSS]

The postman delivered the CF but nothing else today.

First, I cut 2 x CF sheets 95mm x 246mm from the larger sheet I made earlier, then I bonded them together. These will sit across the horizontal frame rails in front of the carburettor float bowls. At about 6mm thick this is incredibly rigid and easily capable of supporting the weight of the battery (600g). This should lift out, once the battery is removed and will be retained vertically by 2 x 5mm socket cap screws through the washers welded to the inside of the frame to support the wiring harness and provide mounting points for the air scoops.

I found some thin wall steel tube that fits nicely over the two horizontal frame rails just in front of the carburettor float bowls. This was cut at 100mm and then sliced longitudinally into segments about 70 degrees on the circumference. These will sit on the frame rails with the two CF sheets (bonded together) between them.

To retain the battery itself I have used a yellow plastic sharps bin (my weekly dose of immune system suppressant comes as injections and they nearly always deliver a sharps bin with it) cutting about 50mm off the bottom.
This plastic " cup" will be attached to the underside of the CF plates and laminated in place with about 4 layers of CF. The width of the yellow plastic is only about 15mm less than the width of the CF so I figured it would be better to laminate first then cut the hole to slot the battery into the top.
Once the CF is cured I will extract the plastic cup afterwards.
I got as far as bonding the CF plates to the steel tube. This took a long time as I had to get the CF plates exactly the right length so they did not intrude into space above the frame rail. effectively the transverse CF plate is tangential to the two horizontal tubes. If they extend much above these tubes I would have to modify my air scoops. Work stopped on this while the CF to steel bonding cured.

I then roughly cut out the shape of my gear lever, which in profile looks like a cross-section of a flaccid male reproductive organ from a year 8 sex education textbook.
I need a bush/spacer 3/4" wide with a 7/8" hole bored through it to spacer the gear lever itself away from the footrest hanger plate. The spacer will need a flange (c 1.1/2") to attach it to the lever via 3 x 3mm x 12mm SS socket cap screws. I was halfway through drilling the 7/8" hole when the drive belt on my lathe parted and there was no spare in evidence. That obviously stopped progress on that front.

Finally, I spent some time making the rear wheel adjusters slide within the swinging arm. I had two options here remove the powder coating from inside the swinging arm or remove material from the adjuster block. I chose the latter which on subsequent reflection was probably the wrong option as I suspect with use the compression of the powder coating will cause it to flake off and then the adjuster blocks will be a bit sloppy or cause excessive compression of the swinging arm extrusion.
In my defence, I could think of no way to remove the powder coating for the length of the adjustment (c45mm) without causing the extreme ends of the swinging arm to be tapered.